United States v. Kenneth Johnson

UNPUBLISHED UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT No. 21-6301 UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, Plaintiff - Appellee, v. KENNETH RAY JOHNSON, Defendant - Appellant. Appeal from the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, at Alexandria. Leonie M. Brinkema, District Judge. (1:08-cr-00027-LMB-1) Submitted: November 18, 2021 Decided: November 19, 2021 Before MOTZ, THACKER, and HARRIS, Circuit Judges. Affirmed by unpublished per curiam opinion. Kenneth Ray Johnson, Appellant Pro Se. Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit. PER CURIAM: Kenneth Ray Johnson appeals the district court’s orders denying his motions for compassionate release under 18 U.S.C. § 3582(c)(1)(A)(i), as amended by the First Step Act of 2018, Pub. L. No. 115-391, § 603(b)(1), 132 Stat. 5194, 5239. We have reviewed the record and conclude that the district court did not abuse its discretion in denying Johnson’s motions. See United States v. Kibble, 992 F.3d 326, 329 (4th Cir. 2021) (stating standard of review), cert. denied, No. 21-5624, 2021 WL 4733616 (U.S. Oct. 12, 2021); see also United States v. High, 997 F.3d 181, 189 (4th Cir. 2021) (affirming district court’s order denying compassionate release where “[t]he court’s rationale . . . was both rational and legitimate under [18 U.S.C. § 3553(a)]” and “the court sufficiently explained its denial to allow for meaningful appellate review” (internal quotation marks omitted)). Accordingly, we affirm for the reasons stated by the district court. United States v. Johnson, No. 1:08-cr-00027-LMB-1 (E.D. Va. Feb. 2, 2021; Feb. 2, 2021). We dispense with oral argument because the facts and legal contentions are adequately presented in the materials before this court and argument would not aid the decisional process. AFFIRMED 2